איכה יהוה:כ״א(כא) הֲשִׁיבֵ֨נוּ יהוה ׀ אֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ ונשוב [וְֽנָשׁ֔וּבָה] חַדֵּ֥שׁ יָמֵ֖ינוּ כְּקֶֽדֶם׃
Lamentations 5:21(21) Take us back, O LORD, to Yourself, And let us come back; Renew our days as of old!
Lamentations 5:21(21) Take us back, O LORD, to Yourself, And let us come back; Renew our days as of old!
The Rambam on Teshuvah משנה תורה, הלכות תשובה יהוה:א׳(א) רְשׁוּת לְכָל אָדָם נְתוּנָה. אִם רָצָה לְהַטּוֹת עַצְמוֹ לְדֶרֶךְ טוֹבָה וְלִהְיוֹת צַדִּיק הָרְשׁוּת בְּיָדוֹ. וְאִם רָצָה לְהַטּוֹת עַצְמוֹ לְדֶרֶךְ רָעָה וְלִהְיוֹת רָשָׁע הָרְשׁוּת בְּיָדוֹ.
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 5:1
Freewill is granted to all people. If one desires, they can turn to the path of good and be righteous. Should they desire to turn to the path of evil and be wicked, the choice is theirs.
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 5:1
Freewill is granted to all people. If one desires, they can turn to the path of good and be righteous. Should they desire to turn to the path of evil and be wicked, the choice is theirs.
וּמַה הִיא הַתְּשׁוּבָה. הוּא שֶׁיַּעֲזֹב הַחוֹטֵא חֶטְאוֹ וִיסִירוֹ מִמַּחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ וְיִגְמֹר בְּלִבּוֹ שֶׁלֹּא יַעֲשֵׂהוּ עוֹד שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ישעיה נה ז) "יַעֲזֹב רָשָׁע דַּרְכּוֹ" וְגוֹ'. וְכֵן יִתְנַחֵם עַל שֶׁעָבַר שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ירמיה לא יט) "כִּי אַחֲרֵי שׁוּבִי נִחַמְתִּי". וְיָעִיד עָלָיו יוֹדֵעַ תַּעֲלוּמוֹת שֶׁלֹּא יָשׁוּב לְזֶה הַחֵטְא לְעוֹלָם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (הושע יד ד) "וְלֹא נֹאמַר עוֹד אֱלֹהֵינוּ לְמַעֲשֵׂה יָדֵינוּ" וְגוֹ'. וְצָרִיךְ לְהִתְוַדּוֹת בִּשְׂפָתָיו וְלוֹמַר עִנְיָנוֹת אֵלּוּ שֶׁגָּמַר בְּלִבּוֹ:
More MaimonidesWhat constitutes Teshuvah? That a sinner should abandon his sins and remove them from his thoughts, resolving in his heart, never to commit them again as [Isaiah 55:7] states "May the wicked abandon his ways...." Similarly, he must regret the past as [Jeremiah 31:18] states: "After I returned, I regretted."
[He must reach the level where] He who knows the hidden will testify concerning him that he will never return to this sin again as [Hoshea 14:4] states: "We will no longer say to the work of our hands: `You are our gods.'"
He must verbally confess and state these matters which he resolved in his heart.
More MaimonidesWhat constitutes Teshuvah? That a sinner should abandon his sins and remove them from his thoughts, resolving in his heart, never to commit them again as [Isaiah 55:7] states "May the wicked abandon his ways...." Similarly, he must regret the past as [Jeremiah 31:18] states: "After I returned, I regretted."
[He must reach the level where] He who knows the hidden will testify concerning him that he will never return to this sin again as [Hoshea 14:4] states: "We will no longer say to the work of our hands: `You are our gods.'"
He must verbally confess and state these matters which he resolved in his heart.
משנה תורה, הלכות תשובה ב׳:א׳-ב׳(א) אֵי זוֹ הִיא תְּשׁוּבָה גְּמוּרָה?
זֶה שֶׁבָּא לְיָדוֹ דָּבָר שֶׁעָבַר בּוֹ וְאֶפְשָׁר בְּיָדוֹ לַעֲשׂוֹתוֹ וּפֵרַשׁ וְלֹא עָשָׂה מִפְּנֵי הַתְּשׁוּבָה. לֹא מִיִּרְאָה וְלֹא מִכִּשְׁלוֹן כֹּחַ...
(ב) וּמַה הִיא הַתְּשׁוּבָה?
הוּא שֶׁיַּעֲזֹב הַחוֹטֵא חֶטְאוֹ וִיסִירוֹ מִמַּחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ וְיִגְמֹר בְּלִבּוֹ שֶׁלֹּא יַעֲשֵׂהוּ עוֹד ...
וְצָרִיךְ לְהִתְוַדּוֹת בִּשְׂפָתָיו וְלוֹמַר עִנְיָנוֹת אֵלּוּ שֶׁגָּמַר בְּלִבּוֹ:
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 2:1-2(1) What constitutes complete teshuvah? A person who confronts the same situation in which they erred when they had the potential to commit the error again, and nevertheless abstains and does not commit it because of their teshuvah alone, and not because of fear or lack of strength.
זֶה שֶׁבָּא לְיָדוֹ דָּבָר שֶׁעָבַר בּוֹ וְאֶפְשָׁר בְּיָדוֹ לַעֲשׂוֹתוֹ וּפֵרַשׁ וְלֹא עָשָׂה מִפְּנֵי הַתְּשׁוּבָה. לֹא מִיִּרְאָה וְלֹא מִכִּשְׁלוֹן כֹּחַ...
(ב) וּמַה הִיא הַתְּשׁוּבָה?
הוּא שֶׁיַּעֲזֹב הַחוֹטֵא חֶטְאוֹ וִיסִירוֹ מִמַּחֲשַׁבְתּוֹ וְיִגְמֹר בְּלִבּוֹ שֶׁלֹּא יַעֲשֵׂהוּ עוֹד ...
וְצָרִיךְ לְהִתְוַדּוֹת בִּשְׂפָתָיו וְלוֹמַר עִנְיָנוֹת אֵלּוּ שֶׁגָּמַר בְּלִבּוֹ:
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 2:1-2(1) What constitutes complete teshuvah? A person who confronts the same situation in which they erred when they had the potential to commit the error again, and nevertheless abstains and does not commit it because of their teshuvah alone, and not because of fear or lack of strength.
Expanding the Definition
Do not say that there is only teshuvah for sins that have an action, such as fornication, robbery, and theft; rather, just as a person must do teshuvah for these, so too he must search out his bad character...traits, and do teshuvah for anger, hatred, jealousy, laziness, pursuit of money and honor, gluttony, and so on....A person must return in teshuvah from all of these.
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 7:3
Do not say that there is only teshuvah for sins that have an action, such as fornication, robbery, and theft; rather, just as a person must do teshuvah for these, so too he must search out his bad character...traits, and do teshuvah for anger, hatred, jealousy, laziness, pursuit of money and honor, gluttony, and so on....A person must return in teshuvah from all of these.
Mishneh Torah, Repentance 7:3
Forgiveness
How are we to reconcile G-d’s high hopes for humanity with our shabby and threadbare moral record? The short answer is forgiveness. G-d wrote forgiveness into the script. G-d always gives us a second chance, and more. All we have to do is to acknowledge our wrongs, apologize, make amends and resolve to behave better, and G-d forgives. It allows us to hold simultaneously to the highest moral aspirations while admitting honestly our deepest moral failings. That is the drama of the Jewish High Holy Days.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
How are we to reconcile G-d’s high hopes for humanity with our shabby and threadbare moral record? The short answer is forgiveness. G-d wrote forgiveness into the script. G-d always gives us a second chance, and more. All we have to do is to acknowledge our wrongs, apologize, make amends and resolve to behave better, and G-d forgives. It allows us to hold simultaneously to the highest moral aspirations while admitting honestly our deepest moral failings. That is the drama of the Jewish High Holy Days.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
Fundamental Perfection
The potential for Teshuvah is always present: Even if a person consistently stumbles, damaging his righteousness and ethical behavior, this does not damage his fundamental perfection. A person’s fundamental perfection is found in his longing and desire to achieve perfection, a desire which is the foundation of teshuvah, and which continually governs his path in life. (Orot haTeshuvah 5:5)
...G-d created teshuvah before creating the world. Even before humanity was created, people have been given the possibility of changing the course of their lives. In the latter sense, repentance is the highest expression of the divinity within us- the capacity to choose freely. One can extricate oneself from the binding web of one’s life, from the chain of causality that otherwise compels one to follow a path of no return.
...Repentance gives people the power to overleap their past, to separate from them and reach new heights that were not even visible before. It is the potential for something else.
...It is only a beginning, for the present has been altered but earlier actions and their consequences continue to generate a chain of cause & effect. For every wrong deed in one’s past, the penitent is required to perform certain acts that surpass the ordinary individual, to complement & balance the picture of one’s life. One must build and create anew and change the order of good & evil in such a way that now not only one’s current life acquires new form & direction, but the totality of one’s life is positive.
The penitent does more than return to one’s proper place. One performs an act of amendment of cosmic significance, restoring the sparks of holiness which had been captured by the forces of evil.
...Teshuvah always resides in the heart; even at the moment of sin, the impulse for teshuvah is hidden in the soul, radiating influence which will be revealed later, with the arrival of the regret that calls for teshuvah. Teshuvah resides in the depths of existential life, for it preceded the universe, and before sin arrives its teshuvah is already prepared. Therefore, nothing in this universe is as certain as teshuvah, and, ultimately, all will be repaired.
(Rav Kook, Orot haTeshuvah 6:2)
...Teshuvah is a natural product of health and maturity. A properly functioning body removes harmful materials, thereby improving & healing the body. One who is spiritually & physically healthy will remove evil deeds & the evil, corrupt impressions they produce, every evil thought, & the distance from Divine influence which founds all evil, crudeness and ugliness. (O.T. 5:1)
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, The Thirteen Petalled Rose: A Discourse on the Essence of Jewish Existence and Belief (adapted)
The potential for Teshuvah is always present: Even if a person consistently stumbles, damaging his righteousness and ethical behavior, this does not damage his fundamental perfection. A person’s fundamental perfection is found in his longing and desire to achieve perfection, a desire which is the foundation of teshuvah, and which continually governs his path in life. (Orot haTeshuvah 5:5)
...G-d created teshuvah before creating the world. Even before humanity was created, people have been given the possibility of changing the course of their lives. In the latter sense, repentance is the highest expression of the divinity within us- the capacity to choose freely. One can extricate oneself from the binding web of one’s life, from the chain of causality that otherwise compels one to follow a path of no return.
...Repentance gives people the power to overleap their past, to separate from them and reach new heights that were not even visible before. It is the potential for something else.
...It is only a beginning, for the present has been altered but earlier actions and their consequences continue to generate a chain of cause & effect. For every wrong deed in one’s past, the penitent is required to perform certain acts that surpass the ordinary individual, to complement & balance the picture of one’s life. One must build and create anew and change the order of good & evil in such a way that now not only one’s current life acquires new form & direction, but the totality of one’s life is positive.
The penitent does more than return to one’s proper place. One performs an act of amendment of cosmic significance, restoring the sparks of holiness which had been captured by the forces of evil.
...Teshuvah always resides in the heart; even at the moment of sin, the impulse for teshuvah is hidden in the soul, radiating influence which will be revealed later, with the arrival of the regret that calls for teshuvah. Teshuvah resides in the depths of existential life, for it preceded the universe, and before sin arrives its teshuvah is already prepared. Therefore, nothing in this universe is as certain as teshuvah, and, ultimately, all will be repaired.
(Rav Kook, Orot haTeshuvah 6:2)
...Teshuvah is a natural product of health and maturity. A properly functioning body removes harmful materials, thereby improving & healing the body. One who is spiritually & physically healthy will remove evil deeds & the evil, corrupt impressions they produce, every evil thought, & the distance from Divine influence which founds all evil, crudeness and ugliness. (O.T. 5:1)
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, The Thirteen Petalled Rose: A Discourse on the Essence of Jewish Existence and Belief (adapted)
A Kind of Creativity
| The time for teshuvah is Rosh Hashanah, the anniversary of the creation of the world. This is because teshuvah...is also a kind of creativity. The Hebrew word teshuvah means repentance and return. However, as a creative act, teshuvah is not a simple return. We return to who we are meant to be, but have not yet become. We return to growth and possibility that has lain dormant within us and not yet flourished, much as a sculpture lies hidden within a brute block of stone. That is why the process of teshuvah, as painful and even humiliating as it can be, is in fact very joyous and hopeful. Rabbi Kalonymous Kalman Shapira, the Rebbe of the Warsaw Ghetto 1941, Rosh Hashanah |
When Returning Leads to Trouble
To do Teshuvah, etymologically, should simply be to “return”, in other words, to “go home”, to walk all the way back to the place whence we came. Yet as a baalat Teshuvah, it seems to me that “returning” paradoxically leads us to tread untrodden, sometimes risky tracks. In other words, this process and life-changing experience does not escort us back to where (and who) we used to be, which is precisely what we are trying to avoid. We are trying to avoid repeating our past deeds, which we can look back on with intense repulsion. Indeed, were we to repeat, or return to, our former ways, we would miss the whole point of Teshuvah altogether.
(Rabbi Dina Rosenberg)
To do Teshuvah, etymologically, should simply be to “return”, in other words, to “go home”, to walk all the way back to the place whence we came. Yet as a baalat Teshuvah, it seems to me that “returning” paradoxically leads us to tread untrodden, sometimes risky tracks. In other words, this process and life-changing experience does not escort us back to where (and who) we used to be, which is precisely what we are trying to avoid. We are trying to avoid repeating our past deeds, which we can look back on with intense repulsion. Indeed, were we to repeat, or return to, our former ways, we would miss the whole point of Teshuvah altogether.
(Rabbi Dina Rosenberg)
Teshuvah as Self-Recognition
...But how can we do this? Our inner self is deep and broad, and beyond it lies the very self of God. The return to godliness is like the return to the foundation, to home base. This return means independence - self recognition. The return to one's self is the essence of godliness. This is not just a religious return of mitzvot or good deeds, prayer or inspection of actions - but rather, a return to the place I belong. In other words, a person's return, or teshuva, is simply to be himself or herself as much as possible. And this is the proper teshuva; this is the place of closeness that God seeks. We must be ourselves more, must be in our own proper place despite everything that is happening around us. To hear our own voice, to be more connected to ourselves.
The key to teshuva is being in the right place in the world for us as special people, distinct from everyone else, as a person with a sense of special self-destiny. A person should say: "The world was created for me" and to attempt to identify that special mission for which she or he was born.
Rabbi Dr. Anat Sharbat
...But how can we do this? Our inner self is deep and broad, and beyond it lies the very self of God. The return to godliness is like the return to the foundation, to home base. This return means independence - self recognition. The return to one's self is the essence of godliness. This is not just a religious return of mitzvot or good deeds, prayer or inspection of actions - but rather, a return to the place I belong. In other words, a person's return, or teshuva, is simply to be himself or herself as much as possible. And this is the proper teshuva; this is the place of closeness that God seeks. We must be ourselves more, must be in our own proper place despite everything that is happening around us. To hear our own voice, to be more connected to ourselves.
The key to teshuva is being in the right place in the world for us as special people, distinct from everyone else, as a person with a sense of special self-destiny. A person should say: "The world was created for me" and to attempt to identify that special mission for which she or he was born.
Rabbi Dr. Anat Sharbat
Like Being "Born Again"
If a human being does teshuvah on Rosh Hashana, the Holy One, blessed be He, considers him as if he was just now created in the world, as every human being who returns through teshuvah is like a new creature.
Sefer Abudirham, Laws and Commentary on Rosh Hashana
If a human being does teshuvah on Rosh Hashana, the Holy One, blessed be He, considers him as if he was just now created in the world, as every human being who returns through teshuvah is like a new creature.
Sefer Abudirham, Laws and Commentary on Rosh Hashana
Holding onto a grudge is like drinking poison and thinking it’s going to kill the other person.
-Origin unknown
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.
-Suttas (Buddhist scriptures)
-Origin unknown
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.
-Suttas (Buddhist scriptures)